spurs and bits

[joshua.M]

Dose anyone here have any experience making bits and spurs. My dad is a horse trainer and wants me to make a tire iron bit, and a pair of clover leaf spurs, i have never made them so dose anyone have a bit of tips and tricks for making them? The pictures attached are examples, i like the rowel and shank on the spurs. The bit should be easy enough
-Josh

[CurlyGeorge]

Josh, check out this thread. Maybe you can contact some of these folks.

http://www.iforgeiron.com/topic/20134-my-forged-spurs/

[shoer]

Josh - in YEARS of looking I have found one published book on the subject and it's excellent. "How To Make Bits And Spurs" by Robert M. Hall, ISBN # is 0-914330-78-0.
That said, both can be made out of just about anything. The spurs should be tempered a bit if possible, otherwise the bands will warp pretty easily. The mouthpiece on the bit should made of mild steel ONLY. Pure copper will do but is too soft to last long. Anything else will dry out the horse's mouth which is not what you want. A standard width for the mouthpiece of the bit that you show would be 5 1/8" measured from the inside of one shank to the inside of the other shank.

Hope this helps.

[joshua.M]

Josh - in YEARS of looking I have found one published book on the subject and it's excellent. "How To Make Bits And Spurs" by Robert M. Hall, ISBN # is 0-914330-78-0.
That said, both can be made out of just about anything. The spurs should be tempered a bit if possible, otherwise the bands will warp pretty easily. The mouthpiece on the bit should made of mild steel ONLY. Pure copper will do but is too soft to last long. Anything else will dry out the horse's mouth which is not what you want. A standard width for the mouthpiece of the bit that you show would be 5 1/8" measured from the inside of one shank to the inside of the other shank.

Hope this helps.

Thanks it helps alot, that is the info i needed, book is ordered :P

[Ted T]

Josh, I am pleased that you are considering to learn to make spurs.
I have decited to learn how to make spurs also, about two years ago .
But with your post, I have been "spured on" to go ahead and put some action to my thought!

I also ordered "How To Make Bits And Spurs" by Robert M. Hall through Barns and Noble this afternoon.
I have also bought and studied video's (or DVD's) from Bruce Cheaney ~ The art of spur making Vol 1 & 2
Phone 1-(940)-668-8607 to order by phone.

Here is a URL to a site that will also be helpful! http://www.ehow.com/how_6824012_make-boot-spurs.html

Make it happen!
your friend; Ted Throckmorton

[ironstein]

here is a great forum for you guys, there are some awesome bit and spur makers on there, and they are pretty helpful: http://bitsandspurs.freeforums.org/general-discussion-f6.html Check out Larry Fuegens stuff, absolutely amazing!

[Frank Turley]

Robert Hall's book is good.

You have the option of traditional joinery or contemporary welding assembly. The traditional methods require mortise and tenon work, careful hole drilling and careful filing.

In the old way on a fixed jaw bit, the mouthpiece (cannon) ends would have a square or rectangular tenon with carefully filed, 90º shoulders. Each tenon goes through its corresponding hole or mortise in the cheekpiece. The protruding portion is then peened over, as in riveting. The resulting peened head shows and is cleaned up by filing and polishing. The cannon is held vertically in the vise for the peening operation. I use sole leather on each vise jaw to keep from marring or galling the work.

With present day welding, the cannon ends can be Veed, carefully lined up to the cheeks and welded by gas or electric methods. This would be followed by filing cleanup and polishing. Another way would be a combination of techniques. Make a square or round tenon, run it through the hole and plug weld it. The plug weld can be cleaned and hidden.

The antique Mexican and Californio spurs had the rowel shank tenoned through the center of the heel band. Again, the tenon would be square or rectangular in cross-section to keep it from ever turning. The heel band hole is countersunk by filing so that the peened portion upsets and sinks into the countersink and can be filed smooth and burnished. This method is seldom used today by spur makers.

Nowadays, a one piece spur can be made by using oversized stock and hacksawing or hot splitting a medial kerf and opening it up hot into the heel band. Another route would be to simply weld the shank to the heel band and clean it
up.

Hall's book explains the strap hangers.

Rowels are made by cold by hacksawing, filing, and drilling the central hole.

Frank Turley co-author with Simmons "Southwestern Colonial Ironwork"
http://www.turleyforge.com Granddaddy of Blacksmith Schools

[Mike C]

Robert Hall's book is good.

The antique Mexican and Californio spurs had the rowel shank tenoned through the center of the heel band. Again, the tenon would be square or rectangular in cross-section to keep it from ever turning. The heel band hole is countersunk by filing so that the peened portion upsets and sinks into the countersink and can be filed smooth and burnished. This method is seldom used today by spur makers.

Now I have to try this. Too many people make very nice rowels, buttons and swivel hangers to take the time to make them with traditional methods, if one is to make them to sell with some profit, the rest I will forge. Just my opinion. Looking at Garcia spurs, I think they may be done by tenon and welded nowadays. After about the first dozen pair, I've managed to work out jigs and processes that make it simpler and faster with more preciseness in spur matching and fit. I'm no expert but the finished product is only getting better and better. Thank you all for the information and ideas from the past threads and posts. I just ordered the book as well to try my hand at bits.